There are several patents directed to boat lift apparatus but only two are believed to be pertinent for discussion. The first patent is U.S. Pat. No. 5,970,813 which discloses a drive system that can be used for raising cable supported loads. Disclosed in this arrangement is a motor and belt driven wheel providing a first stage which drives a worm and worm wheel providing a second stage drive system. The worm and worm wheel are connected to a back plate support, which is composed of a high thermal conductivity metal, such as aluminum, to facilitate heat transfer. The second patent is U.S. Pat. No. 6,397,691 which discloses a double reduction gear drive means and includes two gear reduction mechanisms. The gear drive is a direct drive system which utilizes direct engagement between two adjacently positioned pairs of gears, each of which reduces rotational speed. Again, only one worm gear is used.